The Stepmother is Unkind - Chapter 85

Lingnan, Nanyue State City, State Government Office—

When the time came, all the officials of the prefecture government came out of their respective offices and said goodbye to each other.

Chu He stepped out of the hall door unhurriedly, and was stopped by Liu Sima, who is now in charge of the post of governor, “Chu Changshi, this official is hosting a banquet at home, can Chu Changshi have a few drinks at the banquet?”

“If you have wine to drink, the lower official will naturally be free.”

Chu He refused to come, and immediately agreed.

“Chu Changshi is refreshing.” Liu Sima stroked his beard and laughed, raised his hand, “Please.”

Chu He followed him out of the government office. During this period, Liu Sima invited several state government officials, and everyone was happy to go there.

Liu Sima invited Chu He to get on the carriage, but Chu He declined, and rode slowly behind the crowd to Liu Sima’s house.

Nanyue Prefecture was the main prefecture of Lingnan, but due to various reasons such as location, terrain, environment, and the mixed living of various ethnic groups, everyone in Beijing thought that it must be closed and impoverished.

Before Chu He came here, he also thought so, but as soon as he entered Nanyue Prefecture, he found that although the prosperity of this state city was far from the capital and even the major state cities in the south of the Yangtze River, it was by no means poor.

In other words, the gap between the rich and the poor is extremely obvious, and the common people have the same perception as Chu He, but the local tyrants who control the power are extraordinarily lavish and extravagant.

The prefecture is located in the middle of Nanyue Prefecture, and the street where it is located is the main street of Nanyue. It is wide enough for three carriages to run side by side, and there are shops, restaurants and restaurants on both sides.

But this street is not the most prosperous place in the state city. The most prosperous place in Nanyue state is in the east of the state city.

Liu Sima’s house was located in the southeast of the city, and their group had to travel eastward from the cross street in front of the prefecture, and this street divided the east of the city. The southeast was where some famous local people lived. The largest inn and restaurant in Nanyue state, there are also brothels, song halls, casinos… the ultimate pleasure.

Chu He used to be a fool, and he didn’t have much self-motivation. The reason why he came to Lingnan was to spend a three-year term in various places in Lingnan, and then transfer to another place after three years.

His best friend was born in the Xie family, and his friend’s father ranked first among the officials, so it was not difficult for him to be transferred.

After Chu He took office, the former prefect of Nanyue had his own cronies, and he didn’t care if he didn’t use him. He wandered around idle all day, and discovered the strangeness of Nanyue, but he didn’t plan to investigate it. Extremely diffuse.

When he first came, everyone in the prefectural government looked at him with a scrutiny, and didn’t have much contact with him. It was only when they saw that he really didn’t do his job, he relaxed a little, but he was still on guard.

For Chu He, that is, he not only has a salary, but also does not have to do more work, and naturally he will not force himself to integrate into the prefecture.

He is good-looking, has a free and unrestrained temperament, and gradually made some friends. He lived a very comfortable life here.

However, with the sudden change of the governor of South Vietnam, the officials of the prefectural government ended his life of non-professional work after they knew that he and the governor of the new governor were friends of the same department.

Some people of low status flatter him a lot, while others, like Liu Sima, hide their temptations in their enthusiasm.

Chu He rode on his horse and looked at some tall mansions passing by in front of him. He couldn’t help muttering in his heart: Xie Qin’s good-looking emperor’s close ministers are inappropriate, why did he come to Lingnan?

Ahead, Liu Sima’s carriage stopped in front of a house with “Liu’s house” written on it, and Chu He also took advantage of the situation to restrain his horse and turned over and dismounted.

Liu Sima invited with a smile on his face, “Chu Changshi, please come in.”

With a cynical smile on his face, Chu He cupped his hands, then extended his hand and said, “Liu Sima, please.”

Liu Sima was in his fifties this year, and he didn’t pay much attention to the young official Chu He before, but now he reached out to hold Chu He’s wrist and walked in together to show his closeness.

The banquet has been set up, and as soon as they entered the hall, they invited everyone to take their seats. Chu He’s seat was next to Liu Sima.

As soon as they were seated, Liu Sima said to Chu He: “Chu Changshi, this official also invited a few guests, do you mind?”

When talking about the official rank, Chu He was a subordinate, and he naturally had no right to mind the banquet in Liu Sima’s mansion, so he even shook his head to express his position.

As soon as the two of them finished speaking, the guests brought them into the hall, clearly walking together, but they could be easily distinguished from the clothes and accessories of the two parties. They were two people.

One of them is dressed in white with butterflies embroidered on the hem; the other is brightly dressed, all wearing various silver ornaments.

As soon as they entered, Liu Sima enthusiastically stood up to meet them, and the other officials also stood up.

Chu He’s gaze swept across the crowd, but he didn’t put on airs. Then, through Liu Sima’s introduction, he learned that they were from the two major clans in Nanyue Prefecture, the barbarians and the squat, the white clothes were barbarians, and the color clothes were Aboriginal people.

“Chu Changshi, let me introduce to you, this is Hu Jin, the third leader of the barbarians.” Liu Sima first pointed to the man in his thirties who was the leader of the barbarians, and then introduced the leader of the barbarians, who was in his early twenties. The young man with a green face and arrogance said, “This is Fan Zhe, the young patriarch of the Yi clan.”

Except for the young patriarch of the Yi clan, who is a human being, the rest are all white, but there is no cautious fear or even much respect for the attitude of the people in the government.

Chu He naturally knew that this was a local snake, but he was a connoisseur, a jinshi, and a Tanhua Lang of Daye. Nodding, counted as acquaintance, other than that, nothing else.

With his unenthusiastic attitude, the young patriarch of the Yi clan was a little unhappy on his face, but the barbarian chief Hu San had a normal expression, repeatedly praising Chu He for being “young and promising”.

Liu Sima invited a group of people to sit down again, and the two white bodies were arranged before other local officials, and everyone present was as if nothing had happened.

Chu He didn’t show his face, but kept his heart.

The music of the different races started, and beautiful women from different races streamed in and danced gracefully.

The head of Hu San said that this was the dancer he brought, and he said modestly: “Chu Changshi came from Kyoto, and he must have a lot of knowledge. Our singing and dancing in this remote place have been axed in front of Chu Changshi.”

Everyone at the banquet was intoxicated, and Chu He also looked at it with great interest, “So exotic, beautiful, and humble.”

Liu Sima and the head of Hu San looked at each other, then smiled and said, “If Chu Changshi likes it, you can bring one back to accompany him.”

Chu He shook the folding fan lightly, and he did not refuse as soon as he thought about it, and if he was a friend, he shared the blessings, the difficulties, and the beauty. Said: “Our Chief Inspector is very good at rhythm and rhythm, and I must also like this exotic style, but he is a son of a noble family, so he is well-informed, and this official is ashamed.”

When everyone heard him mention the new governor, their eyes exchanged.

The young patriarch of the Yi clan glanced at the dancing girl in the middle and said, “In Nanyue, there are the Nanmeng clan, who are attached to the barbarians.

Head Hu San glanced at him, did not deny it, but also invited Chu He to be a guest in the clan, and took advantage of the situation to ask about the new governor’s likes.

This is the purpose of their banquet today.

After taking a sip of wine, Chu He waved his folding fan and said Beijing Zhong’s compliments to Xie Qin. By the way, he also praised the prefect’s wife a few words about “everyone’s background”, “gentle and elegant”…

He looked like he knew everything, and between the cups and the cups, he taught everyone present that they had some impressions of Xie Qin.

A talented and noble family son, how could such a person stay in Lingnan?

If you have to suffer some hardships, and then hit a wall, you will not be able to bear this place, and hurriedly transfer back to the capital to continue enjoying yourself.

Three days later, Xie Qin, who couldn’t bear hardship in the eyes of the people of Nanyue, finally arrived outside the city of Nanyue.

The officials of the Nanyue Prefecture and the nearby county officials received the news in advance, and they all waited several miles outside the city to welcome the new governor.

About half an hour or so, billowing smoke and dust appeared on the official road. More than a dozen escorts opened the way, and galloped majestically. When they reached a few feet in front of the officials, they restrained the reins together and stopped in unison.

The guards got off their horses in unison, and the head guard saluted Liu Sima and Chu He with fists, and informed that the governor’s carriage was coming with a cup of tea, and then pulled the horse back to the sides, standing sternly.

This is the Xie family of the aristocratic family, and the appearance is different.

The officials of Nanyue Prefecture looked at each other with shock and surprise in their eyes.

Only Chu He lowered his head and sneered that Xie Qin was more like a family than in Beijing.

But it’s normal. Everyone in the capital knows the Xie family and the Xie family son, but in this remote place, sitting in the well and watching the sky, you need to be intimidated by one or two, so as not to look down on the aristocratic family.

After a cup of tea, an extremely long convoy slowly appeared and finally stopped in front of everyone.

The carriage door was pushed open, and two beautiful maidservants, who were like everyone’s daughters, stepped down first, slowly got off the carriage, and stood respectfully.

After a while, the officials thought that the new Inspector, who was supposed to be in the dust, walked out, with a Qinghua temperament, standing tall in front of the carriage, and swept over everyone coldly, only when Chu He was there, there was a pause.

Below, all the officials were stunned by his graceful appearance.

At this time, Chu He took the lead in bowing and salute, breaking the deadlock with a loud voice, “Xiaguan pays respects to the Chief Prefect.”

Only then did the officials react. Starting from Liu Sima, they all bowed and saluted.

Xie Qin got off the carriage, and said in a cold voice: “You don’t need to be too polite, please get up.”

He followed the official uniforms of the officials to confirm their official positions and identities, confronted Liu Sima accurately, and said straight to the point: “Liu Sima, go back to the prefecture first to hand over.”

Liu Sima raised his eyes and glanced at the new governor, and agreed.

The other officials glanced at the majestic guards behind the new governor. They did not dare to delay, so they moved to the sides and asked the new governor to go first.

The relationship between Xie Qin and Chu He could not be concealed, so Xie Qin directly asked Chu He to get on his carriage and enter the city together.

Chu He agreed, and in the eyes of everyone, he stepped on the carriage with Xie Qin.

As soon as the carriage door was closed, Chu He smelled the fragrance of the tea inside the carriage and said, “I’ve been waiting too long outside, I’m really thirsty, Qingyu, quickly pour me a cup of tea.”

Qingyu lowered her head and smiled when she heard the words, took out the teacup, and poured a cup of tea for Chu He.

Chu He didn’t even taste the good tea from the Xie family. A healthy governor suddenly fell ill and resigned, but teaching Nanyue is not right.”

Xie Qin keenly grasped the key point, “Suddenly seriously ill?”

Chu He nodded, “Yes, it is said that he suddenly fell into a coma due to an acute illness and could no longer serve as the prefect. His family only sent a letter to resign on his behalf, and he has not woken up yet.”

Lingnan was a long way from the middle of Beijing. Xie Qin only knew that the former governor was in an emergency, but he didn’t know there was something strange here.

Xie Qin tapped his knees with his fingers, thoughtfully.

Seeing that he didn’t answer, Chu He asked again, and said suspiciously, “Could it be that you, Xie Jingming, can’t bear to be my friend?”

Xie Qin paused, speechless, “When did you become so pretentious?”

Chu He has reason and reason: “Look, you first let me release Nanyue, and then you release it again. It’s so coincidental that the former governor, who has not yet reached his term of office, suddenly became seriously ill and made room for you…”

Qingyu and Hongsi looked at each other, and according to what he said, it really seemed like there was such a thing.

Xie Qin’s face was cold, and he said “ha”, full of sarcasm.

Chu He looked at Xie Qin in surprise, “Xie Jingming, you’ve changed!”

Xie Qin ignored him and closed his eyes.

Chu He suddenly had nothing to say, and was suffocated.

Both Sapphire and Red Silk chuckled.

Chu He grabbed it, and immediately said to the two maids, “Can’t you laugh at me too?”

Hong Su smiled and said: “How dare the maid dare to laugh at Chu Langjun, but Chu Langjun thinks, compared with our young lady, which is more important or less?”

The implication is that Xie Qin has traveled thousands of miles and even separated from his wife.

However, Chu He said, “How could Xie Jingming know that his sons and daughters would love each other?”

Both Qingyu and Hongsi looked at their calm-faced Langjun, smiling without saying a word.

The arrival of the new governor was not a relegation, but the son of the right prime minister and the talent of the champion. Many people in the prefecture heard about this and were quite curious. They took to the streets and stood on both sides to watch the governor enter the city.

They also saw the large convoy of the governor and the unusually imposing guards, whispering in whispers, and their expressions were full of curiosity and fear.

The Xie family’s entourage and guards kept their eyes open, but they also noticed the different clothes of the people of Nanyue Prefecture.

Xie Qin was not in a hurry to observe the state city, and sat steadily in the carriage.

In the restaurant, someone looked down at the Xie family’s carriage, looking unrecognizable.

The carriage stopped in front of the prefectural government office, Xie Qin ordered Qingyu and the valet to place the luggage, and then called Liu Sima and others into the main hall of the prefectural government office, took out the appointment documents, and handed over the official seal.

Liu Sima was very obedient, and when he only handed over the official seal of the provincial governor, he glanced at the official seal one more time, and was reluctant to give up his authority.

But then he smiled and said with a bit of attentiveness: “Lord Inspector, the lower official wants to take care of Lord Inspector…”

Xie Qin glanced at the sky, and politely declined: “This official has to go to visit the doctor first, and he also needs to see the envoy Qi Jiedu. Let’s wait for the future.”

When Liu Sima heard this, he echoed: “What you said is, I don’t know if you want to accompany a lower official?”

Xie Qin agreed and ordered the guards to send the pilgrimage to the Jiedu envoy’s mansion, and then directly asked him to lead the way, bringing the visiting ceremony to the former governor’s house.

The former governor’s family used to live in the mansion’s house, but he was unable to hold office due to illness, and there was a new governor in the court, so he moved from the prefecture to the house in the southeast of the city.

The previous governor was surnamed Du. The Du family was a little surprised by Xie Qin’s arrival, but it was common sense.

Mrs. Du looked haggard, and she only came out to greet her, and was entertained by the Du family’s son.

Xie Qin was also very polite, and took the initiative to mention the doctor he brought from Beijing, “If there is a need, this official will teach the doctor to come here.”

The doctors in Beijing, especially the doctors who were sent out by the New Inspector, must have good medical skills.

Du Dalang was overjoyed and thanked him again and again.

Xie Qin had visited him before, but he didn’t stay much, so when he returned to the prefecture, he taught the guards to send the doctor to Du’s house.

At this time, the Jiedu envoy also sent a reply letter, asking him to come to the house tomorrow.

The next day, Xie Qin went to see the envoy Qi Jiedu,

The envoy Qi Jiedu was waiting for him in the mansion. When he saw him, he greeted him with great enthusiasm: “My nephew, the journey is hard work. I have prepared a banquet for my nephew to catch the wind and clean the dust.”

Xie Qinli was thorough, and he also wanted to get closer to Qi Jiedu, the most powerful envoy in Lingnan.

But this Qi Jiedu was extremely slick, and at a glance, he could see that Xie Qin had a dignified temperament. After taking his seat, he greeted His Majesty, his father Xie Youxiang, and asked about everything in the capital. From left and right, he looked quite stern. Affinity, but did not give any help to Xie Qin.

Therefore, when Xie Qin left Qi Jiedu’s envoy’s residence, he just paid a visit and got nothing.

When he returned to the prefecture, he specially taught people to take a detour, and also saw Nanyuezhou City, which was different from what he knew.

Chu He was waiting for him in the second hall of the prefectural government, and when he saw that he finally came back, when he asked about his experience with the envoy of Qi Jiedu, he said: “The emperor is far away from the mountain, and no matter how high the right minister is, he can’t be far away. Nearly thirsty, what did you say you came here for?”

Xie Qin was not impatient, and patiently instructed people to move the books and files over, and greeted Chu He to read with him.

Chu He: “…Xie Jingming, before you came, I didn’t have to do anything all day.”

Xie Qin raised his head and said calmly, “Yao Qing, you and I are friends, is it possible to see me groping alone?”

Chu He immediately said, “Didn’t you ask for this?”

“It seems that I didn’t ask for it myself.” Xie Qin said casually, changing his tone instantly, no longer talking about affection, and directly ordered: “I am your Shangguan, Chu Changshi, do things.”

Chu He: “…”

This was the opposite of what he had expected at the beginning.

But he really couldn’t watch Xie Qin busy alone, he could only read the book with him resignedly, and by the way, he said some of what he saw and gained, and he didn’t forget to mention the local snake in South Vietnam.

Because of Xie Qin’s arrival, Chu He inquired in advance. The two clans were extremely wealthy and intertwined, and almost the entire Lingnan respected them somewhat. Many small clans depended on them to live. Many places in Nanyue Prefecture had two clans behind shadow.

He said it very seriously, but Xie Qin always had a calm expression, and finally only said softly: “I see.”

Chu He: “…You seem like I’m exaggerating.”

When Xie Qin saw that his friends were also speechless, he rarely felt a little fun of teasing people, and a smile flashed in his eyes.

And Xie Qin met the patriarchs of the two clans at the reception banquet the next day, but the envoy Qi Jiedu did not appear on this occasion.

Xie Qin had a cold temper, and he was born like that, and he didn’t plan to make friends with local forces in a hurry, so the whole reception banquet was attended by Chu He in every way.

Chu He was smiling, but in his heart he was scolding Xie Qin for being brazen. If he knew today, why would he come to Lingnan? What a joy to be a superintendent.

So much so that when he was full of resentment, when he learned that the barbarian Patriarch Hu had prepared a beautiful Nanmeng beauty for Xie Qin, he had some thoughts of watching a good show and did not shirk it for him.

Xie Qin had long known about such an occasion, and it was inevitable that some dancers and singers would be required. In order to prevent being approached, he specially brought red silk and sapphire jade to serve him with him.

But if someone wants to send it, it doesn’t matter if there is someone around him to serve.

When the “Nanmeng Beauty” that Patriarch Hu said appeared, everyone present gasped and stared blankly, even Chu He flashed his eyes.

The beauty was wearing a light gauze skirt, her waist was slender, she bowed down and bowed down, and a small section of her white waist appeared and disappeared, which was extremely confusing.

The most important thing is her face, which is like a fairy, and the beauty is not ordinary.

“Nan Duo sees Lord Inspector Shi.”

Her Chinese accent was a bit strange, but her voice was like a yellow hawk, which did not bring any flaws to her beauty.

But Xie Qin’s three masters and servants reacted strangely.

As soon as they saw this woman, they immediately thought of Yin Mingyu.

Xie Qin looked at her thoughtfully.

Hong Silk blushed with anger, looking at Nan Duo as if looking at an enemy.

Qingyu sighed in her heart: The young lady must like her very much…

The rest of the people present couldn’t tell from the new governor’s expression, but just looking at the look of the charming maid next to the governor, they thought she was afraid of Nan Duo and her competing for favor in front of the governor.

But she reacted fiercely, which is to prove that Nan Duo’s stunning appearance may capture the heart of the governor, so Patriarch Hu is more and more eager to offer the beauty.

Nan Duo always had a blank face, and had no unnecessary reaction to where he was going.

Xie Qin rubbed his wine glass, pondered for a moment, and nodded.

Chu He looked at him in amazement, not expecting that he would really accept this beauty.

Hong Su and Qingyu were also shocked, and after Hong Su was shocked, she looked at Nan Duo more and more defensively.

In the evening, a few masters and servants and a Chu He brought Nan Duo back to the post house of the prefecture, and Xie Qin instructed Qingyu to restrain Nan Duo and not to move around.

Seeing him like this, Chu He thought about it a little more and asked, “Jing Ming, do you suspect that those people deliberately planted people around you?”

“Isn’t it normal to put people in?”

Chu He frowned, “That’s too arrogant.”

Xie Qin taught red silk to grind ink, spread out a piece of letter paper, pressed it with a paperweight, and said calmly, “It doesn’t affect my actions, and I don’t have to oppose them. Quan should be a way to teach them to relax towards me.”

And the guards of the Xie family are not vegetarians. If they can’t even watch a woman, the Xie family should be completely rectified.

Chu He frowned and said, “It makes sense.”

Sechin picked up a pen, dipped in ink, and wrote on the letter paper.

Seeing the contents of the letter on the side, Hong Silk couldn’t help showing a slightly strange look.

Chu He looked at Hong Silk’s expression, and he didn’t seem to be in love with Xie Qin. He was really curious and asked, “Jing Ming, what are you writing?”

Xie Qin said: “Write a letter.”

There is a stunning beauty in the state house, and Yin Mingyu has to be taught to know.

Xie Qin paused for a moment, raised his pen to read the description of the shriveled woman in his letter, and felt that it was not enough, so he raised his head and said to Chu He: “Yao Qing, paint a portrait for me tomorrow, I invite you drink.”

Chu He asked casually, “You have superb painting skills, why did you let me paint? Who do you want to paint?”

“That Nanmeng woman.” Xie Qin replied quite naturally, “I don’t care about the portrait of the woman next to me, remember to put your private seal on it.”

Chu He was at a loss: “…”